A Great Family Vacation – in San Francisco (!)

When I mentioned to many of my friends that we were spending spring break in San Francisco, I was met with quizzical, curious gazes and statements like these: “Oh, well, now that’s interesting. Let me know how it goes.” Okay. Sure.

We started with a relatively painless plane ride to sunny CA. My son was lucky enough to snag the window seat, so he took a photo of the clouds.

Flying with school aged kids is really not bad at all. You’re past the baby stage, when you’re wondering whether you’ll get evil stares from judgmental, intolerant passengers if your baby makes so much as a peep. You’re also past that toddler/little kid stage where you need to have snacks, beverages, toys and books ready to go to entertain the little people and you have to worry about bathroom breaks. I’m happy to say that, by this age, they can entertain themselves (especially with today’s cool technology gadgets and in-flight movies). They downloaded very different selections (DS – football highlights, DD – Suite Life of Zack & Cody episodes) but so what? Whatever makes ‘em happy. Here’s a view of DS’s tray table:

(DS took this photo, too). It shows his mini Munny that he created during the flight as well as a few other items that kept him busy.

DD, meanwhile, was fascinated by her soda can:

Upon arrival, you’d think I’d be most interested in this:

or this.

But what really got my attention was the food. It’s so darn good in California. They have things like this

and this

and this

and this.

Mmmmm…I can taste it right now. It’s one of the best reasons to visit that state.

You can also find interesting things to buy, like this bag made out of seatbelts from a 1950s Buick

(okay, sure, you can get it online, too, but I didn’t know it existed until I saw it in CA).

For your techy, playful side, they also have cool places like Zeum (an arts and technology museum), The Tech (museum of innovation) and Exploratorium (a hands-on science museum). At Zeum, the kids made a claymation movie, where they made clay characters then used one of the museum’s existing sets, cameras and computer programs to create a short movie. The Zeum folks give you a DVD of your movie to take home, too! You can also record your own CD (using a teleprompter and microphone) or appear in a toothpaste commercial (which also records to a DVD for you to take with you, with a suggested donation of $5). It’s a nonprofit museum in the middle of San Francisco that’s worth an afternoon of your time.

We were disappointed by a place that our (apparently outdated) guidebook referred to as “heaven for tweens” called Metreon which is basically just a building that houses a movie theater, restaurants and an arcade. Don’t bother.

If your kids like computers, I recommend a 40 minute drive to an out of the way place called The Tech, which is in San Jose/Silicon Valley. The Tech is another science/technology kind of place. You can do funky things like take a picture of your head then play with the image on a computer, making it look as if it were made out of brick, concrete, wire, and more. Fascinating! Other activities included designing a bicycle, creating a computer roller coaster (and then going for a simulated ride on it!), experiencing a simulated earthquake and reading from a teleprompter to record (what sort of seems like) a speech on the floor of Congress.

Superimpose your face into a floating spacesuit.

Back in San Francisco, Exploratorium was a blast, particularly their new exhibit called The Mind where older kids can manipulate all kinds of contraptions while learning more about perceptions, causal relationships and physics. My favorite was The Tactile Dome, which is basically a maze that you crawl through in complete blackness (it’d be quite scary for most little kids, so the museum sets a minimum age requirement of seven).

My whole family loved this adventure. It was definitely the highlight of this museum. Well, that’s if you don’t include the toilet drinking fountain.

Would you take a drink?

Kids of a certain age, though, will always be drawn to playgrounds. No matter where you go on vacation. Sure enough, DS’s face lit up like a CFL when he saw the playground near Zeum.

After spending a good chunk of time there, he concluded, “This is the best playground I’ve ever seen!”

So, even if your kids are just not interested in museums, you can take them to this playground and they’re sure to have a blast. It has that squishy rubber base that somehow makes it feel more cozy and safe. The slide is fast (good design, no doubt) but best utilized with long pants.

There you have it. A fantastic family vacation in San Francisco! And really, I have to say it was my favorite trip yet.

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Read this article for more great ideas regarding what to do with your kids while in San Francisco.